Time study device



June 18, 1940- R. M. Riel-TER TIME STUDY DEVICE Filed Aug. 22, 1939 mms BY 57, R'

ATTORNEYS Patented June 18, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TIME STUDY DEVICE Rudolf M. Richter, Brooklyn, N. Y. Application August 22, 1939, Serial No. 291,320

3 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in calculating devices and more particularly it pertains to a device for calculating so-called time studies.y

A time study consists of determining the rate to be paid a workman on a piece work basis for a certain number of pieces of work or operations completed, based on the hourly or daily compensation of a workman.

In certain plants workmen are scaled according totheir qualifications. For example, one group of workmen may be scaled at 40 per hour, one group at 50 and so on, and it is the purpose of the present invention to determine the price to be paid workmen of various groups on a piece work basis commensurate with their scaling upon the time basis.

It is a further object of the invention so to construct the device that it will be simple in its y operation and of economical manufacture. y

With the above and other objects in view, reference will be had to the accompanying drawing which illustrates one embodiment of the invention, and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a device constructed in accordance with the present invention,

Figure 2 is a plan view of the device on an enllarged scale with the cover removed therefrom,

Figure 3 is a transverse detail sectional view on an enlarged scale taken substantially on the line 3-3 of Figure 1,

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view on an enlarged scale taken substantially on the line 4 4 of Figure 1, and;

Figure 5 is an inverted plan view of the cover plate of the housing.

Referring more specically to the drawing, the reference numeral III designates a housing which is rectangular in form and which has a removable end wall III' and a cover plate II removably held in position by means of screws or other suitable fastening means I2. 'I'he cover plate II has a window I4 which is rectangular in shape and through which is adapted to be exposed the indicia carried upon a web I5 of paper or other suitable material.

Mounted adjacent each-V side wall of the housing and carried by the end walls thereof, there is a shaft, these shafts being designated I6 and I1. The left hand end, in the drawing, of each shaft is mounted in a recess I3 and the other end of each shaft passes through an opening Il in the removable end wall'of the housing. Each shaft is preferably provided with a reduced p0rtion 20 upon which is secured an operating knob 2l by means of a pin or the like 22; Each of the shafts I6 and I1 is provided with a slot 23 which provides means for attaching the ends of the web to their respective shafts. Springs 5 are secured as at 6I to the housing and each of said springs has resilient legs 62 which engage the web as it is rolled upon the shafts, the springs exerting sufficient pressure to prevent accidental rotation of the shafts and the unwinding of the 10 web therefrom.

VIt will be noted that the web of paper is of sufficient width to engage the inner face of the end walls of the housing and to prevent longitudinal movement of the shafts, thus maintainl5 ing the shafts in proper operating position.

Intermediate of the two shafts I6 and I1, there are three idle rollers 24, 25 and 26. The rollers 24 and 26 are positioned closely adjacent the bottom wall 21 of the housing, while the roller 20 25 is mounted adjacent the cover plate I I of the housing at a point immediately behind and in alinement with the window opening I4 thereof, as best illustrated in 'Figure 4. These idle rollers 24, 25 and 26 have reduced extensions 2S 25 by which they are mounted in the end walls of the housing.

By an examination of Figure 4, it will be noted that the web I5 passes from the top side of the shaft I6, beneath the idle roller 24, over the idle roller 25, beneath the idle roller 26 and under the shaft I1. By this arrangement of the web, the shafts -I6 and I1 are operated in the same direction to wind the web thereon. For example, if the shaft I6 is turned in a clockwise direction, the web will be wound upon the shaft I6 from the shaft I1 and similarly, if the shaft I1 is turned in a clockwise direction, the web will be wound thereon from the shaft i6.

As illustrated in Figure 5, the cover plate carries two bars 30 and 3I slidably mounted in suitable gui'des 32 upon the under side of said cover plate. The bar 3l carries a single pointer 33, the bar 30 carries a plurality of similar pointers, there being one pointer 34 and a plurality of equally spaced pointers 35, 36, 31, 38,39, 40 and 4I spaced from the pointer 34.- The bars 3l! and 3| are provided adjacent one end with a series of rack teeth 42 and mounted beneath the cover plate and meshing with the rack teeth 42 of the bars 31| and 3l, there is a gear 44. This gear is carried upon the inner end of a shaft 45 which is providedA with an operating knob 46 mounted upon the shaft and positioned exteriorly of the cover plate II of the housing.

By this construction, if the shaft 45 is rotated the bars 30 and 3| will be reciprocated in opposite directions for a purpose to be hereinafter described.

The web carries certain indicia arranged in the form of columns, and adjacent the window I4 and mounted upon the outer face of the cover plate there is a plate 50 which is divided into a plurality of areas 5|, 5 2, 53, 54, 55, 56, 51, 58 and 59. These divisions are so arranged on the plate 50 with respect to the columns of indicia upon the web l5 as to register therewith. The division 5| carries the caption MIN. indicating minutes The division 52 carries the caption PROD. indicating production, while the remaining divisions 53 through 59 include ilgures indicating the hourly wage of groups oi' operators on a time basis according to their ratings as herretofore explained.

The left hand column on the web in the drawing indicates minutes and fractions thereof. The next column to the right indicates production and the succeeding columns indicate the pre-calculated price per hundred pieces to be paid a workman depending upon the group of which he is a member.

I will now give an example setting forth the manner in which the device is used.

Assuming that the article to be produced or the operation to be performed consumes three minutes. In such a case the web is adjusted until the column indicating three minutes is visible through the window opening |4 thereof. The operating knob 46 of the shaft 45 is-next grasped and turned to reciprocate the bars and 3| until the pointer 34 occupies a position between the three and the rstzero to the right in which position the pointer is indicated in the drawing. Through the medium of the gear 44 and the rack teeth 42 of the bars 30 and 3|, the several pointers 34 through 4| are moved simultaneously with the moving of the pointer 34 to position between the three and the iirst zero to the right, to their proper positions with respect to the indicia in the other columns upon the printed web I5.

In the drawing, the device is illustrated as adjusted to illustrate the problem above outlined and it will be noted that with the pointer 34 adjusted to position between the three and the iirst zero on the right of the left hand column which indicates that the operation consumed three minutes, the pointer 33 of the bar 3| indicates that the production per hour would be eighteen. The remaining pointers 35 through 4| indicate the price per hundred pieces which the operator is to be paid according to the wage which he receives per hourly wage when computed upon a time basis. For example, if the operators hourly wage is he would receive $2.218 per hundred pieces. If he were an operator whose hourly wage was 55e, he would receive $3.055 per hundred, or if he were an operator whose hourly wage was`72i, he would receive $4.00 per hundred pieces or operations.

It will be noted that there is an apparent discrepancy in the computation of the production with respect to the time. For example, if an operator takes three minutes to produce an operation or a piece, it would naturally be assumed that instead of eighteen pieces or operations per hour, he would complete twenty operations or pieces per hour. However, the indicia on the web is pre-calculated to automatically talle care of a ten per-cent allowance for lost time allowed each operator in a factory under conditions.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present invention provides a device by which time studies can be more rapidly and more accurately computed than is possible with slide rules and similar devices at present employed, and while the invention has been described primarily as a time study device, it is obvious that by variations of the indicia employed upon the web and upon the plate 50, the device may be adapted and operated to compute various problems other than time studies and it is to be understood, therefore, that the invention is not to be limited to time study devices.

Having thus described the invention what is general operating claimed, is:

1. A computing device comprising a housing having a window therein, a plate mounted upon the housing and extending parallel with one of the side edges of the window opening, said plate being divided into a plurality of areas each bearing an identifying indicia or caption, a printed web within the housing, the printed matter on said web being arranged in columns which coincide with the areas of the plate adjacent the window opening, means for moving said printed web across the window opening of the housing to expose sections of the columns of printed matter thereon through the window opening, a single pointer extending into the window opening from one side thereof and registering with one column of printed matter upon the printed web, a plurality of pointers extending into the window opening from the opposite side thereof, there being a pointer in said group for registration with each of the remaining columns of printed matter upon the printed web, and means for simultaneously moving said single pointer and said group of pointers in opposite directions relatively to their respective columns of printed matter upon the printed web.

2. A computing device comprising a housing having a window therein, a plate mounted upon the housing and extending parallel with one of the side edges of the window opening, said plate being divided into a plurality of areas each bearing an identifying indicia or caption, a printed web within the housing, the printed matter on said web being arranged in columns which coincide with the areas of the plate adjacent the window opening, means for moving said printed web across the window opening of the housing to expose sections of the columns of printed matter thereon through the window opening, a single pointer extending into the window opening from one side thereof, and registering with one column of printed matter upon the printed web, a plurality of pointers extending into the window opening from the opposite side thereof, there being a pointer in said group for registration with each of the remaining columns of printed matter upon the printed web, and means for simultaneously moving said single pointer and said group of pointers in opposite directions relatively to their respective columns of printed matter upon the printed web, said means comprising a pair of bars carried by the housing and arranged one upon each side of the window opening and upon which said pointers are mounted, and means for simultaneously reciprocating said bars in opposite directions.

3. A computing device comprising a housing having a window therein, a plate mounted upon the housing and extending parallel with one ol' being a pointer in said group for registration with each o! the remaining columns of printed the side edges o! the window opening, said plate being divided into a plurality o! areas each bearing an identifying indicia or caption. a printed web within the housing, the printed matter on said web being arranged in columns which coincide with the areas of the plate adjacent the window opening, means for moving said printed web across the window opening of the housing to expose sections of the columns of printed matter thereon through the window/opening, a single pointer extending into the window opening from one side thereof, and registering with one column of printed matter upon the printed web, a plurality of pointers extending into the window opening from the opposite side thereof, there matter upon the printed web, and means for simultaneously moving said single pointer and said group of pointers in opposite directions relatively to their respective columns of printed mat.. ter upon the printed web', said means comprising a pair of bars carried by the housing and arranged one upon each side of the window opening, and upon which said pointers are mounted, raclr teeth upon each of the said bars, a single gear interposed between said bars and operatively engaging the rack teeth of each, and means for rotating said gear.

RUDOLF' MAX RICHTER. 

